More filing online as tax deadline approaches

More Canadians are e-filing their tax returns than ever before. The benefits are obvious to those who use the system and the pitfalls are negligible, but there are certain details to keep track of if you want to make your electronically enhanced relationship with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) relatively glitch free.

People have been signing on steadily since the CRA made electronic filing available to professionals in 1990 and individuals in 2000. This year, John McCallum, Minister of National Revenue says that of the 12.9 million tax returns filed so far, more than 7.3 million people used NETFILE or EFILE to electronically transmit their information to the CRA.

Financial planners and tax professionals like Cynthia Kett, partner at Stewart & Kett Financial Advisors, have been e-filing client tax returns since the option was first introduced. As a result, Kett says clients receive their returns faster and the process eliminates a step of data entry, which helps information get transferred more accurately.